SG Gets Bush Views in Securities Case

U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement solicited President Bush’s views before declining to file an amicus brief in a Supreme Court case brought by investors seeking to hold third parties liable for accounting fraud.

A lawyer for Bush indicated the president does not support liability for accountants or other third parties that help companies misrepresent their financial picture, the Washington Post reports.

“The president’s views are based on a policy of not expanding the scope of private shareholder litigation against third parties, not on any of the corporations involved in this case or related cases,” Tony Fratto, a White House spokesman, said in a statement.